Geography

Area

Climate

characterized by climates that range from arid to semi-arid, experiencing cold winters and hot summers

Terrain

predominantly consists of rugged mountain ranges, with plains located in the northern and southwestern regions

Land use

Location

located in Southern Asia, sharing borders with Pakistan to the north and west, and Iran to the east

Coastline

0 km (landlocked)

Elevation

Irrigated land

24,930 sq km (2022)

Map references

Asia

Land boundaries

Maritime claims

none (landlocked)

Natural hazards

experiences severe earthquakes, particularly in the Hindu Kush mountains; also vulnerable to floods and droughts

Geography - note

a landlocked country; the Hindu Kush mountains run from the northeast to the southwest, separating the northern provinces from the remainder of the nation; the tallest peaks are found in the northern Vakhan (Wakhan Corridor) region

Natural resources

possesses natural resources such as natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, along with both precious and semi-precious stones, in addition to arable land

Area - comparative

approximately six times the size of Virginia; slightly smaller than Texas

Geographic coordinates

33 00 N, 65 00 E

Population distribution

populations are generally found in the foothills and edges of the rugged Hindu Kush range; smaller communities are scattered throughout various interior valleys; overall, the eastern areas show a higher population concentration, whereas the southern parts are less densely populated

Major lakes (area sq km)

Major watersheds (area sq km)

Major rivers (by length in km)

Amu Darya (shared with Tajikistan [s], Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan [m]) - 2,620 km; Helmand river source (shared with Iran) - 1,130 km

note: [s] indicates river source following the country name; [m] indicates river mouth following the country name